Pages

Friday, 8 April 2011

Daily Wail

I am starting to wonder why I read a newspaper at all, particularly why I read the Daily Mail. Have you noticed how 'I bet you read the Daily Mail' has become a left-wing insult in the past few years, or a way to describe anybody who doesn't find Frankie Boyle that funny?
There are still some things I like about it but a lot of things annoy me about it too; on the one hand fashion designers are castigated for not clothing 'real' (ie over size 14) women but lollipop-headed celebrities are held up for faux-pity if they appear to have put on a couple of pounds; there is an over-reliance on child-related sob-stories (ie my adopted children were so awful I handed them back/I've spent £0000's on IVF and now I can't get funded for any more/I love my son more than my daughter/'Why am I made to feel bad for not having any children?'...where are the 'my kids are great and I love them dearly' stories?); the Affordable Fashion spreads that are based around Monsoon, River Island and Coast. Don't they realise that for many readers affordable fashion begins and ends with Primark and New Look? Actually, reading that it looks like I'm annoyed by Femail rather than the Daily Mail so there might be a solution here...

One thing I scour every day is the Letters page, interested as I am in the emotional turmoil and general opinions of others. On Wednesday I didn't bother to suppress a snort of derision when I read a plaintive missive ('Loneliest Day') from a Miss Smith of Birmingham who writes;

Another Mother's Day has passed, but while families are spoiling their mothers and grandmothers, please spare a thought for those women who are not mothers or wives. I have many friends with children and grandchildren, but on Mother's Day they forget about me as they go off with their children for a Mother's Day lunch.

Thousands hate Christmas because they are on their own. I am never on my own at Christmas, but the one day in the year I really hate is Mother's Day.

My question is﻿, is this a troll or a real person? Can anybody be that selfish and self-pitying as to want to deny mothers (who put up with more crap than any group of people in the world) one special day? Am I mean and out of step with the sisterhood? Or do you agree with Red, who commented with all the contempt a loved-up, beautiful, 21 year-old can muster "If that's how she feels she should have some ******* children!"

3 comments:

I've given up on the papers, except the weekend issues, and I think that a lot of the public shouldn't be allowed to air their illformed opinions. Radio phone-ins are a prime example except Down the Line, the spoof one on radio 4, it's priceless.

ABOUT ME

I'm a loving mum, loving wife, loving daughter and loving sister who is trying to deal with the crummy parts of life as well as the fab parts. I'm aiming to save money, pay off debts and declutter this year. And to be the best person I can be. Watch this space to see me try to pull it all off!